'Glee' says goodbye to Cory Monteith

By Lisa Respers France, CNN

Updated 11:18 AM ET, Fri October 11, 2013

Photos: TV shows that have lost stars14 photos

TV shows that have lost stars – The death of actor Cory Monteith at the age of 31 meant his hit show "Glee" had to figure out how best to deal with his character. Monteith's character, Finn Hudson, also died on the series. "Glee" is not the only one to face such a challenge...

Hide Caption

1 of 14

Photos: TV shows that have lost stars14 photos

TV shows that have lost stars – The producers of the rebooted "Dallas" revisited the "Who shot J.R." mystery of the original show following Larry Hagman's death, of complications from cancer, in 2012.

Hide Caption

2 of 14

Photos: TV shows that have lost stars14 photos

TV shows that have lost stars – John Spencer was beloved as Leo McGarry on NBC's "The West Wing." His death by heart attack in 2005 was written into the show.

Hide Caption

3 of 14

Photos: TV shows that have lost stars14 photos

TV shows that have lost stars – During his 12 years on "Law & Order," Jerry Orbach (left) starred as Detective Lennie Briscoe, and was partnered with a few actors, including Chris Noth as Detective Mike Logan. His character had retired from the force when he joined the spin-off "Law & Order: Trial By Jury," where Briscoe was written out of the show after Orbach's death in 2004 from prostate cancer.

Hide Caption

4 of 14

Photos: TV shows that have lost stars14 photos

TV shows that have lost stars – John Ritter, center -- shown here with "8 Simple Rules" cast mates (from left) Katey Sagal, Amy Davidson, Kaley Cuoco, Billy Aaron Brown and Martin Spanjers -- died of an aortic dissection at the height of the show in 2003. His character also died on the show and two additional cast members, David Spade and James Garner, were cast after a hiatus.

Hide Caption

5 of 14

Photos: TV shows that have lost stars14 photos

TV shows that have lost stars – Nancy Marchand won over critics and fans alike as Tony's cantankerous mother Livia Soprano. When the actress, shown here with "Sopranos" co-star Dominic Chianese, died from emphysema and lung cancer in 2000, her character's death also was written into the script.

Hide Caption

6 of 14

Photos: TV shows that have lost stars14 photos

TV shows that have lost stars – The "NewsRadio" cast, (from left), Khandi Alexander, Andy Dick, Stephen Root, Phil Hartman, Dave Foley, Maura Tierney, Joe Rogan and Vicki Lewis were pretty tight prior to Hartman's death. Hartman, who was shot to death by his wife in 1998, was revealed to have died of a heart attack at the beginning of the fifth season, and Hartman was replaced by actor Jon Lovitz.

Hide Caption

7 of 14

Photos: TV shows that have lost stars14 photos

TV shows that have lost stars – It was during rehearsals for the series "The Royal Family" that Redd Foxx died of a heart attack in 1991. The show had been intended as a comeback vehicle for Foxx and did not survive long after his death.

Hide Caption

8 of 14

Photos: TV shows that have lost stars14 photos

TV shows that have lost stars – Nicholas Colasanto (on the left) is seen here with his "Cheers" co-stars Rhea Perlman, Ted Danson and Shelley Long. His character of Coach Ernie Pantusso was written out of the show as having also died when the actor succumbed to a heart attack in 1985.

Hide Caption

9 of 14

Photos: TV shows that have lost stars14 photos

TV shows that have lost stars – The very handsome Jon-Erik Hexum was just 26 in 1984 when he shot himself with a prop gun on the set of his new show, "Cover Up." The blank from the gun drove a piece of his skull into his brain and he was taken off of life support a week later. His character was killed off the show.

Hide Caption

10 of 14

Photos: TV shows that have lost stars14 photos

TV shows that have lost stars – When actor Michael Conrad died of cancer in 1983, his "Hill Street Blues" character, Sgt. Phil Esterhaus, also died.

Hide Caption

11 of 14

Photos: TV shows that have lost stars14 photos

TV shows that have lost stars – When "Dallas" actor Jim Davis died of cancer in 1981, his character Jock Ewing also died on the show. Here he is seen with his co-star, Barbara Bel Geddes, who played Eleanor Southworth "Miss Ellie" Ewing.

Hide Caption

12 of 14

Photos: TV shows that have lost stars14 photos

TV shows that have lost stars – Jack Soo was one of the original cast members of the hit show "Barney Miller." The series commemorated him in a special episode featuring flashbacks of his character after Soo died of cancer in 1979.

Hide Caption

13 of 14

Photos: TV shows that have lost stars14 photos

TV shows that have lost stars – Diana Hyland only appeared in four episodes as the mother on "Eight is Enough" before her death from cancer in 1977. Dick Van Patten played her TV husband, and his character became a widower who fell in love and remarried when a new actress was cast.

Hide Caption

14 of 14

Story highlights

"Glee" says goodbye to Cory Monteith and his character on Thursday

There was no mention of how his character died

Monteith's real-life girlfriend played his love on the show

On Thursday night, "Glee" bid farewell to a beloved actor and character.

The series ran its tribute episode titled "The Quarterback" in honor of actor Cory Monteith, who played Finn Hudson on the hit Fox show. Monteith was found dead in his Vancouver hotel room in July. His death was ruled accidental due to "mixed drug toxicity, involving intravenous heroin use combined with the ingestion of alcohol" according to the British Columbia Coroners Service.

The memorial episode had been eagerly awaited by fans desiring to see how the storyline would be crafted to deal with the loss of one of the show's central characters. Thursday night's show picked up three weeks after the funeral of Finn with no information as to how the character died.

Viewers watched as the entire McKinley High School grappled with his loss -- including the character of Finn's love, Rachel Berry, played by Monteith's real-life girlfriend, Lea Michele. "He was my person," Michele's character, Rachel, cried during the show.

"I feel like, for me personally, I've lost two people: Cory and Finn," Michele recently told TV Week Australia. "Everyone is asking, 'Is it hard to do this? Is it hard to be back at work?' But the truth is, it's no harder at work than it is in life — so we might as well all be together as a family supporting each other to get through this together."

JUST WATCHED

See how 'Glee' honored fallen star

MUST WATCH

See how 'Glee' honored fallen star 03:36

PLAY VIDEO

The musical show built around a high school glee club included songs like The Pretenders' "I'll Stand by You," "Seasons of Love" from "Rent" and "If I Die Young" by The Band Perry. But a pivotal moment came when Michele's character sang Adele's "Make You Feel My Love" with tears streaming down her face.

JUST WATCHED

Strombo: Monteith was 'the good one'

MUST WATCH

JUST WATCHED

Heroin, alcohol killed Cory Monteith

MUST WATCH

Heroin, alcohol killed Cory Monteith03:07

PLAY VIDEO

There were plenty of tears from most of the characters as Finn's football jacket appeared to become a symbol for Monteith's presence on the show. Worn by Finn's stepbrother Kurt Hummel (played by Chris Colfer), the posession of it is argued for by Noah Puckerman (played by Mark Salling) and draped over the shoulders of Santana Lopez (played by Naya Rivera) before contributing to one of the most emotional moments of the show.

The sadness of the characters and cast extended to the fans. Fox set up a memorial page, #RememberingCory, to curate tweets, vines and Instagrams for viewers to share memories and their feelings watching the very emotional episode.

There were also some lighthearted moments, of course, given that the show is a comedy. At one point the character of Tina Chang (played by Jenna Ushkowitz) consults guidance counselor Emma (played by Jayma Mays) about the constant state of mourning.

"This look is so Tina two years ago," Tina says. "I spent so much time transitioning away from Goth, and look at me. It's like I'm back in that look."

Emma comforts her with a hug and pamphlets titled "It's Not All About You," "When to Stop Talking," and "Wait, Am I Callous?"

Monteith was not only a favorite with fans, but also with his cast mates. At the Emmys in September, actress Jane Lynch, who plays Coach Sue Sylvester on the show, paid tribute to Monteith during a special segment on the awards show.

"Cory was a beautiful soul," Lynch said. "He was not perfect, which many of us here tonight can relate to. His death is a tragic reminder of the rapacious, senseless destruction that's brought on by addiction."